Methods of converting carbon materials and steam into hydrogen, carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide gases using a molten metal compound are known in the art and described in, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,252,774 to McMahon et al. and entitled Production of Hydrogen-Containing Gases, incorporated herein by reference. Briefly, a carbon material and steam are brought into contact with a molten metal compound within a molten metal reactor. When the carbon material and steam are contacted with the molten metal compound, the carbon material and steam are converted to a gas comprising carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, and hydrogen. Any metals or impurities within the liquid hydrocarbon may be trapped within the molten metal compound.
A consistent issue with molten metal reactors is providing the necessary contact time between the carbon material to be reacted and the molten metal compound. As such, molten metal reactors may be long and contain a substantial quantity of the molten metal compound and it may be costly to heat and maintain the molten metal compound at the desired temperature. Another problem common with molten metal reactors is the product gas stream may comprise some of the molten metal compound. Any molten metal compound in the product gas stream may damage and corrode equipment and piping in processing the product gas stream.
Accordingly, there exists a need for a molten metal reactor which provides the necessary contact time for converting the carbon material to the gas product stream and also produces a product gas stream free of molten metal.